Bacton, Herefordshire
- Herefordshire
- West Midlands
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- Herefordshire
Bacton (Welsh: Bactwn) is a small village in a rural area of south-west Herefordshire, England, 14 miles (23 km) from Hereford.[1]
History
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/Motte_and_Bailey%2C_Bacton_-_geograph.org.uk_-_624704.jpg/220px-Motte_and_Bailey%2C_Bacton_-_geograph.org.uk_-_624704.jpg)
One mile to the north are some earthwork remains of a small motte and bailey castle known as Newcourt Tump – "Tump" is a dialect word for a rounded hill or tumulus.[2] The castle seems to have fallen out of use by the 14th century.[3]
According to Domesday Book in 1086, Bacton, then in the hundred of Stradel, had only two households. The Lord of the Manor was Gilbert of Eskecot, whose tenant-in-chief was Roger of Lacy.[4][5] The manor's history becomes clearer from the 13th century onwards.[6]
Parish church
The parish church of St Faith's dates from 13th century and has a lengthy entry in Pevsner's survey of the county's buildings.
Inside is a memorial to Blanche Parry. It is possible that an altar cloth belonging to the church was made from a dress once worn by Queen Elizabeth I of England and given to Blanche Parry. The material of the cloth appears to form part of the clothing of the Queen in the early 17th-century "Rainbow Portrait", attributed to Marcus Gheeraerts the Younger.[7][8]
The church belongs to the Ewyas Harold group of parishes and has a service about once a month.[9] Next to it is a village hall.[10]
Listed buildings
Bacton parish church is listed Grade II*. A further 16 buildings, barns and monuments from the 17th to 20th centuries are listed as Grade II, several of them in the churchyard.[11]
Transport
Bacton has a single, daytime bus service to Hereford on Wednesdays.[12] The nearest railway station is at Hereford (14 miles, 23 km). Bacton is 4 miles (6.4 km) on the secondary B4347 road from the main A465 road between Hereford and Abergavenny.
References
- ^ Ordnance Survey: Landranger map sheet 149 Hereford & Leominster (Bromyard & Ledbury) (Map). Ordnance Survey. 2009. ISBN 9780319229538.
- ^ OUP site. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
- ^ Historic England. "Monument No. 105885". Research records (formerly PastScape). Retrieved 19 January 2017.
- ^ Domesday entry: Retrieved 19 January 2017.
- ^ More on Gilbert. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
- ^ History site. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
- ^ Danny Lewis (17 January 2017). "This Altar Cloth Might Have Been Elizabeth I's Skirt". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- ^ Bacton Church on Explore Churches site. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
- ^ A Church Near You Retrieved 19 January 2017.
- ^ Herefordshire Council Retrieved 19 January 2017.
- ^ Listed Buildings in Bacton Retrieved 19 January 2017.
- ^ Bus times. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
External links
Media related to Bacton, Herefordshire at Wikimedia Commons
- Map sources for Bacton, Herefordshire
- Bacton in the Domesday Book